Boomers Interview Better

Why women over 50 are great interviewers

by Linda Yellin

Photograph: Shutterstock.com

The Wall Street Journal recently ran a list of common interview mistakes made by job seekers ages 50 and up (including asking for salaries that matched their abilities). Well, to that we say, Harrumph! Women who are 50-plus have interview skills that younger workers can only hope to acquire:

1. We know not to show up in tank tops. We won’t even show up sleeveless (you will never see our upper arms). If we’re having a bad hair day, we won’t wear a backwards baseball cap. But we will shake your hand, not just shrug and say “Hey.”

2. While answering questions, we won’t play with our hair (we don’t want our fingers to smell like Rogaine). We won’t text our best friends or tweet during the interview. We won’t say, “My last job sucked”—if only because we know it sucks to say so.

3. If the interviewer asks, “Where do you want to be in five years?” we know not to answer truthfully: on a golf course in Arizona. We also know not to ask (yet) how much time off we get.

4. We’ll have removed any online photos of ourselves barfing at a fraternity party. And if asked to pee in a cup, no marijuana will show up. Maybe Lipitor. But no marijuana, unless, of course, it’s medical marijuana.

5. When the interview is concluded, we’ll leave behind a résumé concisely detailing our experience. Because we happen to have experience. Later, we may even send a thank-you note—but only to prove we actually know how to write one.